Aging is characterized by a host of changes in metabolic variables which have profound effect on disease development and on survival. The BLSA provides the opportunity to conduct analyses on these variables to relate them to other characteristics of the individual, and to analyze for long- term effects of these complex interactions. Variables which are potentially alterable by changes in life style characteristics (diet, body weight, activity level) are of especial importance in this respect. Age- specific normative data are required and can only be determined rationally by analyses such as these. In men and women across the entire adult age span dietary records in the late 1980s show continued improvement in quality in all age groups. Fat intake in men continues to fall as does intake of cholesterol. Average cholesterol intake in BLSA women is less than the 300 mg/day goal. Women are more likely to take vitamin supplements than men and it is the group with better diets who are more likely to take supplements. In this highly educated population, a considerable percentage of the subjects are below the 2/3 RDA level for vitamins E, B6, Fe, Ca, Mg and Zn in their diets. Older people are similar to younger subjects in this respect. Older ("senior") athletes resemble younger men in their body composition (lower fat, higher lean body mass than sedentary men). Plasma retinol levels are higher in older subjects and in men, but women have higher Betacarotene levels. Alpha-tocopherol levels did not differ with sex, but were higher in older people.